Unlike Clockwork Part III

Another half hour passed by slowly.

Nearly four hours had been extinguished and their chances of getting out anytime soon seemed more and more bleak. Apparently Parker wanted a car that they were having a bit of trouble obtaining, and he was unwilling to settle for anything less. And they were stuck there until he got what he wanted. He'd made that more than clear.

"Luke," Lorelai said quietly. They had been quiet for a while, so when Lorelai's voice broke through, Luke turned to look at her quickly.

"Yeah," he answered.

She turned her eyes on him. "Are you scared?" She asked.

Luke tossed a glance at Parker as he nervously paced the floor, keeping an eye on everyone. He shook his head. "Nah," he answered. "I am aggravated as hell, though." Lorelai smiled. He took a moment before asking, "Are you?"

"Honestly?" Luke nodded. "No, I'm not. Not anymore." He was both surprised and relieved to hear her say that. "If you weren't here, it'd probably be different, though."

Luke looked down in thought. A smile appeared on his face, and he looked back at her. "Well, I was about to leave, but...I guess I'll stay a few more minutes ." She laughed. "...you know, for you," he added.

He dropped his gaze again, the smile fading slowly from his face. Lorelai's amusement eventually disappeared too, and she continued to look at him. "What if this was it?" She asked out of nowhere. He gave her a confused look. "What if today was it , ya know?" She saw Luke about to dispute her words, and she clarified to give him some peace of mind where she was concerned. "Not that I think that it is, but hypothetically speaking, what if today was it?" She paused. "Would you have any regrets? Things you could've done differently in your life?"

Luke shrugged. "Wouldn't everybody?"

"I guess so."

"But, it isn't so we don't have to worry about that."

"Yeah, you're probably right."

"I am right. There's no room for theoretics."

Lorelai looked down thoughtfully, and Luke mistook it for a retraction in mood. And he felt like a killjoy. He realized in that moment that she wasn't necessarily looking for reassurance. She was just wanting to talk. The last thing he wanted to do was upset her even more than the situation already had.

He turned toward her a little.

"Okay," She looked up, "The clock got pushed back," Luke began. "None of this happened." He went against all of his natural rationalities in participating in the hypothetical game, but he continued. For her. "You have time to do one thing." He paused. "What won't you have to chalk up to a regret? What would you do in that moment?"

She looked at him, seeming to be in deep thought like she was really in a time race. Luke smiled, satisfied she'd taken to it. "Come on, time's ticking," he urged playfully. She looked to him, thinking hard. Luke pushed. "Tick. Tock. Tick. Time waits for no man. You have to make a decis--"

Luke's word was cut short when Lorelai leaned over quickly and pressed her lips hard against his. He froze. She pulled back, only enough to separate their lips. And she looked at him. His eyes were closed. She slowly brought her mouth back to his and gave him a soft peck that told him that she hadn't made a rash decision. She did this once, twice, and then three times. The fourth one was longer. It had Luke finally reacting by placing his hand on the side of her face. Lorelai angled her head, getting ready to take it a step further. That is, until...

"What the hell are you two doing?! Does this look like a fucking Motel 6?" They broke apart and both looked to Parker. "HELLO!" He said loudly while theatrically pointing to his gun. He started to laugh. "Now, I know how the mood can just strike, but damn! Do y'all think this is a sexy situation or something?" He laughed harder, pointing toward them. "You are the man !" He exclaimed to Luke.

Lorelai sat back down in her spot, and Luke took notice of the red that had come across her cheeks. "Asshole," he muttered.

-OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-

"It's been almost five motherfucking hours! I don't give a damn about all of that. I have been patient! You have fifteen minutes and I'm going to show you how fucking serious I am!" Parker slammed the phone down. He came to stand in front of where everyone still sat. "Well," he began, "They obviously don't give a shit about any of you," he said calmly. "If they did, they would have already gotten my MOTHERFUCKING CAR!" He yelled. Never mind the fact that he'd requested a car that probably had to be airlifted from some remote location.

Nobody even flinched. They figured it was another one of his little fits. He had been yelling, storming, and throwing fits for the past couple hours, and everyone was just ready for him to tire himself out and fall asleep like all pre-pubescents tend to do.

It wasn't that everyone was confident they were out of harm's way. It was just that after hours of listening to him scream everything, it had become easier to block out. He was seeming more harmless with each passing second. Many people just stared off into space, thinking of the many things that were going undone because they were in the middle of a hostage situation.

"What time is it?" Lorelai asked as she sat doodling on a piece of paper from her purse.

Luke leaned up and looked at the big clock on the far wall. "Six twenty," he said. He stole a glance at her. She was focused on the task in front of her. She looked so serious. Beautiful. He swallowed, still able to feel her lips against his. They still hadn't said anything on the subject. And Lorelai seemed perfectly content, like nothing had happened.

"I'm hungry," she said. She looked up at the table full of burgers that Parker had requested. True to his word, he hadn't allowed them to touch any of them. He had eaten two, the smell from the burgers wafting teasingly around the room.

"Me too," Luke agreed. He played with his fingers. "What do you want me to make you when we get back to the diner?"

Lorelai looked at him and smiled. She knew what he was doing. Always so Luke . She sat down her pen and paper and crossed her legs. "Um, I'll take a cheeseburger with everything...except anything that was once a part of a garden, a large side of french fries, the biggest piece of boysenberry pie you have, and a mug of coffee-keep it coming." She smiled at him again, and his lips turned up too, not taking his attention off his fingers in front of him. "You think you can remember all of that?"

"Sure. A million calories, minus the good stuff, a side of carbs, add thousands of grams of sugar and fat, and then throw in a nice cup of java to truly cement your future heart attack. Gotcha!"

Lorelai laughed. "Perfect."

"Whooooo!" Everyone turned their attention to Parker as he looked out one of the windows. "Whoooo!" He yelled again. "That thing is bad as hell. Man!" He turned around briefly. He spotted Luke first. "Luke, man, you've got to come see this car! This motherfucker is baaaad." He stepped away with a big, stupid smile. "I am going to rip up the roads in that shit!" He turned back. "You wanna come check it out, man?"

Luke looked at Lorelai, both of them sharing a disbelieving look. The guy had some serious psychological issues.

"No, I'm okay," Luke answered unenthusiastically.

"Suit yourself," he said shrugging. He resumed looking out the window for a while longer before turning around and pulling the gun from its resting place. "Okay," he said taking a deep breath, "Everybody up."

Everyone looked around at each other, curious to what was about to happen next. They all stood up. At that moment, the bank's phone rang, and Parker rushed over and answered it.

"Hello," he answered. He sounded like he was answering the phone for his residence. "Yeah, I see the car...okay...okay...remember, if anybody tries anything, I--okay, glad we understand each other...well, it's been nice talking to you today, Daniel," he said happily before hanging up the phone.

He turned toward the crowd. "Good news, everybody." He held his hands out, the gun still in his right hand. "I'm not going to have to kill anyone today." Everyone continued to look at him, finding no humor at all in what he apparently did. He looked from face to face. "Well, you would think you guys would be a little more happy with that news. Shit." Everyone still remained silent. "Whatever," he said dismissively.

He used his gun to point to Luke. "Luke, get your bitch and form a line right here," he said pointing to another spot.

Luke took a step forward. "Kid, you better watch your goddamn mouth," he said.

"What?" He asked with attitude.

"You heard me," Luke said with the same bite.

Parker's frown turned around instantly. He realized a while ago that his intimidation methods weren't going to work on this guy. Especially when it came to the woman beside him. But he still had to try. "You know what? I like you, man."

Luke's anger wouldn't allow him to accept the compliment. He cared little that the gunman was now in an apparent good mood. "I don't care who the hell you like. Just watch your mouth." Lorelai placed a hand on his arm. It was almost over, and she didn't need him to lose it in the last minute. Parker's words didn't bother her as much as it did Luke.

He laughed this time. "Another situation, me and you could have been friends, man. I need people like you on my team." Luke suppressed the desire to tell him to kiss his ass. He looked down and took Lorelai's hand leading her to the spot that Parker had specified. Parker watched him, his actions. "You know you're getting lucky tonight, don't you?" He said, still amused. " My hero ," he said in a high-pitched voice, apparently mocking what Lorelai might say. She narrowed her eyes at him.

Luke, then remembered he was dealing with someone who obviously had the mindset of a child. "Your car is waiting on you," he reminded calmly.

"Oh, yeah," Parker said instantly. He got back to business. "Alright, everybody line up behind them." Everyone moved quickly, ready to bring the whole thing to an end.

"Wait," he said, thinking of something. "I probably need someone to walk me to my car. Make sure I get there safely." He smiled. "Any volunteers?" He moved his eyes through the line of people, stopping at Luke. "Don't worry, I'm not going to choose her," he said pointing to Lorelai. "I'd probably have to kill your ass if I did," he said. He looked down the line. "You." He pointed to one of the female customers. "I haven't picked on you today. Mind walking me to my car--taking any bullets from trigger-happy cops--that sort of thing?"

He chuckled, and every eye was on him. If only looks could kill. Luke looked down the line to the woman who he had selected, and he could see her visibly shaking from what may occur. He looked back to Parker, and that's when he felt Lorelai applying pressure on his arm. He looked over at her.

She shook her head slowly. 'Don't' she mouthed. He stared into her eyes as his mind reeled. Lorelai was right in stopping him. He couldn't try to intervene with every situation. Eventually his luck would run out with the guy.

He sighed and nodded at her. At least Lorelai was safe. He'd just be grateful with that.

The lady reluctantly stepped out from everyone else. She moved slowly.

"Come on," Parker urged lightly. "You can do it. Come here." She walked over to him, and he turned her around, placing himself behind her. "Now, I'm going to have to get a little closer so you. Don't think I'm taking advantage of you, now." His voice was playful, leading everyone to truly consider the possibility of mental retardation. The scene hardly caused for humor of any kind. Especially for him. He placed his arm across her neck loosely and held his gun by his side.

"Well, I hope you all remember to write." He smiled and waved the rest of them to the door. "You're free to go. And make sure you get a good look at my new car on your way out. It's been fun."

They looked from one to the other, surprised that he was making it that easy. Luke broke the confusion by quickly heading toward the exit, Lorelai in tow. Everyone else followed, some tossing glances back to Parker, making sure he was truly okay with their departure. He used the gun-holding hand to wave them good-bye.

"Okay, it's just you and me now," he said to the woman. He began walking toward the door. "You smell good. What is that? Soap?" The woman leaned uncomfortably into him, silently praying that everything would turn out okay. For her and him. He was young, and despite his vagrant disrespect for the opposite sex and his need to, well, hold up banks, he didn't seem completely like a lost cause. Seriously mislead and in need of some high-end punishment/ counseling, but he wasn't the worst society had to offer. Killing him wouldn't do anyone any good. So, she prayed for both their safety.

All of the hostages, as soon as they'd stepped outside, were ushered over to a distant location away from harm. Everyone watched the bank entrance, waiting for the moment when Parker and his last hostage would emerge.

Finally, that moment came. News vans and police cars were parked everywhere, and Parker took in the scene with wide eyes. He had the gun placed against the woman's temple, and he moved slowly, keeping an eye on every officer as he did so. The ferrari was parked right out front, and as soon as he made it to the driver's side door, he leaned against it, readied himself, then pushed her away, getting quickly into the vehicle.

He obviously hadn't thought that plan through at all. Several officers came and whisked the woman away before more came in cars, quickly blocking him from going anywhere. Aware that he was still armed, they got out and pulled their weapons immediately.

Thinking they were about to open fire on him, Parker pulled the door open, raised his hands and laid on the ground submissively. It was over in a matter of moments..

Even taking into account Luke and Lorelai's distance from the scene, they could still hear Parker yelling, "Don't shoot!" over and over.

A nearby news team zoomed in on the arrest before it went back to the reporter. "A five hour stand off leaves no one hurt, and one gunman behind bars. A truly happy ending to a long day," she said before signing off.

-OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-

The antique shop that Lorelai had to go to was still open by the time they left the bank, and it was only a few minutes away from where they were. Lorelai went in, got the decorative piece, and got back in the truck like everything was going as planned.

They'd just left the shop, and Luke had been driving for two, maybe three minutes. The sun was setting, and the sky was about to have nature's shade drawn over it, making a memory of the day's events. He turned onto the road that would take them home, a road that he and Lorelai had argued about on the way up there. Apparently, Lorelai didn't have faith in back roads as much as he did.

"Can you pull over up here?" Lorelai asked him. She pointed to the side of the road.

"What's wrong?" Luke asked worriedly. He quickly pulled over to the side. He shifted his truck in park and turned off the ignition, and Lorelai undid her seatbelt. Thinking that she was about to be sick, he leaned forward expecting her to open the door and step outside.

Instead, she went in the opposite direction. She reached over and unclicked his seatbelt. She looked completely graceful when she crawled to her knees and straddled his lap in one fluid motion. She lightly grasped his face and brought her lips down on his.

Luke had no time to prepare. No time to even realize what it was she was doing.

She kissed him softly at first, like she was just picking up where she had left off in the bank. Luke was an immediate participant as he brought his hands to rest on her sides before sliding them down to her thighs.

Within seconds the kiss deepened. Lorelai's hands slid around to his neck and pulled his mouth toward her even more. The kiss was slow. Rhythmic.

Her chest was pressed up against his, and they continued to savor. Soft, quiet moans came from Lorelai as Luke's hands moved up and down her thighs, sliding closer and closer to her bottom.

The need for air caused them to break apart, their foreheads resting together. Their eyes remained closed as they took heavy breaths.

"Sorry, I had to do that," Lorelai breathed out.

"I'm glad," was his only response. He moved his hand up and gently pushed her hair back from her face. His touch was light, soft--grazing the skin of her cheek sensually.

She slowly tilted her head and kissed his mouth again. She took his bottom lip loosely between her teeth, and released it, playing with the soft hairs on his neck as she did so. After placing another kiss softly on his lips, heat overcame them again, and they resumed open exploration. Deep. Awakening. Kindling. The connection was unbelievable. Unable to deny. Unfortunately, so, again was the need for oxygen.

They pulled apart. "We have to stop," Lorelai said breathily. She kissed him again.

"Why?" He let his hands slip underneath her shirt briefly before returning them to her thighs. "We don't have to do anything..." He leaned up and kissed her, "...that we don't want to do."

"But we have to," she said, finally opening her eyes. They were dark. Clouded.

Luke looked back to her. She could see how much he wanted her. "Why?" He asked patiently, his hands still traveling.

"Because I'm getting a cramp in my leg," she said.

He looked down at her right leg. He saw it crammed between the door and the seat at an awkward angle, and he started to laugh while rubbing that thigh subconsciously.

She smiled. "Don't laugh. It's not funny," she said, barely lucid after what had just transpired.

"I'm sorry," he said, "You can move."

She didn't budge. "I'm comfortable."

He looked down to her leg again. "No, you're not."

"But, I'm comfortable ," she stressed quietly.

A slow smile spread over his face as he reached up and lightly rubbed her cheek. She looked softly into his eyes as he touched her. They stayed that way for several minutes.

"Okay, this is really starting to hurt," Lorelai said as she climbed off of him.

Luke watched her take her seat beside him. She got comfortable and released a breath, looking back over to him. "What?" She asked softly--an intimate tone that Luke took to immediately.

He swallowed. Took a second to process. "If that was because of what that kid said back there--"

"Luke, no," she said instantly. She paused. Looked at him. "It wasn't."

He wanted to ask 'why' then. Why she had all of a sudden felt the urge to do that, both in the bank and in his truck. But, he didn't. "Okay," he conceded after a while. He started to crank the car, but stopped at Lorelai's voice.

"You're amazing, Luke." He looked up at her. "You've always been," she added. "This is just..." She paused for a long moment. "This is one thing--one...big thing...that I won't have to leave as a...regret."

Luke's eyes shifted, and he hesitated. "So, that would mean that this--" He pointed between the both of them.

"Was a long time coming," she finished. They shared a long look.

"Have you always looked at me like that?" Lorelai asked quietly.

"Like what?" Luke asked, not taking his eyes off of her.

"Like this." She reached up and ran her hand along his cheek before returning it to her lap. "Like I'm special."

"Aren't you?"

She shook her head, still holding his gaze. "Just a poor little rich girl from Hartford," she answered playfully.

Luke leaned over. "Come here," he whispered. She moved toward him, and their mouths connected in yet another heated kiss. They continued on for as long as they could before having no choice but to break apart.

"You're a great kisser," she whispered placing another lingering kiss on his lips. They rested their foreheads together again.

"You're an amazing woman," he said when his breathing returned to semi-normal. "When I look at you, that's all I see."

Lorelai smiled. "Even when I--"

"That's all I see," he punctuated. "Very little choice in the matter."

His admission made her blush heavily. "And if you had a choice...?"

"I thought you didn't like to fish."

She knew where he was going. "I don't," she said smiling.

"Then why--"

"Compliments are very rare but still aquatic. I'm willing to make an exception."

"Well, I think you know the answer to that question."

"I do?" She whispered before kissing him deeply again. She pulled away. "Humor me."

Luke smiled. "Weren't we just in a robbery?"

"Mmm-hmm," she answered distracted.

"And, you're--"

"Too busy falling for you to care? Yeah, I am," she said, her lips already brushing his.

Luke leaned into her, kissing her determinately. They separated but remained close.

"Lorelai?"

"Hmmm?"

"I have a question to ask you."

"What's that?"

He paused. "Will you go on a date with me?"

She smiled. "Um, let me think about that," she said. She moved her mouth against his and kissed him lightly before sticking her tongue out and running it seductively across his lips. Just as she was about to get lost in her own tease, Luke pulled away slightly.

"So, that's a firm 'no' then?" He asked lightly, though he wasn't a big fan of the teasing.

Lorelai only laughed. "It would be my pleasure," she answered seriously.

"Okay," he said, a sudden smile appearing on his face. "Um, is Saturday good for you?"

"Saturday is great for me," she said, taking great joy in watching him smile.

"Good then. That's, uh, really good." He actually sounded relieved that she'd agreed.

Luke cranked up the truck. As he got ready to shift into 'drive', he felt Lorelai's hand on his wrist. He looked over at her. "I just wanted to say 'thank you'. For everything," she said genuinely. Luke dropped his gaze and nodded. She continued on. "And I want you to know..." She paused, looking him directly in the eyes, "...that I still have definite plans to beat your ass." She flashed him a brief smile before turning toward her window.

He continued to look at her, his brows drawn together in confusion. He hadn't exactly expected that. He thought she would have put that aside at that point. A sudden smile appeared. And, he shifted the truck, turning his attention back to the road. "So, um, that's what you're into, hunh?" He joked.

She turned to him quickly, her mouth open. He began to drive. "You're just full of surprises," he added. "I should probably let you know that I, uh..." He looked over at her, "...I don't do assless chaps." He said, almost unable to hold his amusement.

Of all the things she expected to come out of his mouth, that just wasn't one of them. Her usual wit abandoned her for a moment. After releasing several breaths that suggested offense, she finally responded. "Shut up," she said pitifully. Luke only laughed

-OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-

Later that evening, after Luke had dropped her off at home, Lorelai sat on the couch, the phone snuggled between her ear and shoulder.

"You sound frustrated. What's wrong?" She asked Rory, referring to her uncharacteristic greeting.

She heard Rory release a breath. "It's supposed to be March 1st," she said tiredly. "This whole day was awful."

Lorelai smiled. It was like they were one person. "What happened, Hon?" She had called her to share her day, but she instantly forgot about that.

"What didn't happen? First of all, I totally missed breakfast this morning, Two, Paris has been storming around since 5 am talking about bacterial enzymes all over the place, which you would think would have gotten me up in time to catch breakfast, but of course it didn't." She paused. "Let me see...I second-guessed myself on my test and I'm sure I mixed up my algorithm method, and now I get to sit here and stress about it until Friday. That's fun," she said sarcastically. "And please do not get me started on my hair."

"Aw, Honey," Lorelai said sympathetically. "I'm sorry."

"I'm just glad that it's almost over. This day sucked."

Lorelai was quiet as she thought back to an hour ago in Luke's truck. She smiled. "It wasn't so bad," she said.

"And, on top of that," Rory continued like her mom hadn't said anything at all, "Somebody told me that my bank was robbed. I should be happy I wasn't in it I guess." She laughed lightly before releasing a tired sigh. "Okay, enough about me, how has this day been for you, Mom?"

"Oh, it's, uh, funny that you asked..."

The End!

I don't know if this is one of those 'I can't believe she ended it here!' endings, but hopefully not. I don't strive to cause strife. Really.

I don't actually GO into my bank now since they have that wonderful drive thru thingie, but I am pretty sure they don't have restrooms for public use, let alone 1 for men and 1 for women. Oh well. That's probably just one of many faux pas in this here little tale. But, since my life's motto is 'what-the-bleep-ever', it'll remain. Be kind, please rewi--, uh, review!